Below The Beltway

Outside The Beltway has a link to this article about the impact that Katrina will have on energy prices.
Natural gas and gasoline are very different stories, however. Natural gas is largely a domestic market, and the price of an October natural gas contract on the New York Mercantile Exchange shot up 14% today. And although [...]

Carnival of Liberty IX is up at Resistence is Futile. Check it out, even if you disagree with this contribution from your humble correspondent.

My Dad’s brother Tom and three of my cousins all live in the New Orleans area. I’m happy to say that all of them, including the one who stayed behind, are safe.
In other news, Instapundit has these links to charities already stepping in to help.

I suppose it was inevitable, but even with the waters of the Mississippi and Lake Pontchartrain flooding in to New Orleans, the looters are out in full force:
With much of the city flooded by Hurricane Katrina, looters floated garbage cans filled with clothing and jewelry down the street in a dash to grab what they [...]

Over at Winds of Change is discussion of the implications for today of a necessary war that never happened
It began when Hitler, the German dictator now little remembered in history, marched 20,000 troops into the Rhineland demilitarized zone, in violation of articles 42 and 43 of the Treaty of Versailles. France pulled itself out of [...]

First, Hawaii imposed price controls on gasoline. Now comes this story from California:
With chronically high pump prices straining its laid-back ethos, Hawaii embarks this week on a radical experiment to cap gasoline prices, a move being keenly watched nationwide by legislators and consumer groups eager to rein in record fuel costs.
Interest will be especially high [...]

According to this report from CBS News, martial law has been declared in the City of New Orleans.
New Orleans, LA (CBS) - Martial Law has been declared in New Orleans as conditions continued to deteriorate. Water levels in The Big Easy and it’s suburbs are rising at dangerous levels and officials stated they don’t know [...]

The enormity of what happened yesterday is only now beginning to become apparent. As Katrina heads north, it has basically turned into a giant rain storm that will undoubtably cause major flooding in the Ohio Valley. The storms effects were felt as far away as Atlanta last night where my brother-in-law told us there were [...]

In news certain to make both Brazil and Starbucks happy, its being reported that a new study finds that coffee delivers more health benefits than fruit and vegetables
COFFEE is likely to contribute far more health-giving anti- oxidants to the British diet than fruit and vegetables, new research suggests.
The evidence comes from the United States, [...]

As the day unfolds, I’m sure we’ll learn more about just how devastating Katrina has been to the U.S. Gulf Coast. Even at this early hour, though, things do not look good. There are reports of levees breaking overnight around New Orleans and of the French Quarter starting to fill up with water.
Just check this [...]